


journey to the end: there and back again

by Diz (artificialmac)



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Action/Adventure, But also major character death, Dysfunctional Family, Eventual Smut, Feelings Realization, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Major character death - Freeform, Minor Violence, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Slow Burn, Video Game Mechanics, but not really because they respawn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-26
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-14 12:41:06
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,844
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28795545
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/artificialmac/pseuds/Diz
Summary: To date, no one understood how the respawn effect worked.Countless hours of research had been poured into the life-granting ability with little in the way of results. The first experiments only proved that it existed. If you died, (and you were lucky) you came back. Always with a solid surface beneath you, always within a hundred yards of where you died. Further experimentation after these tenets were found was scarce; no one wanted to risk their lives only to find out they were one of the unlucky ones.There was a set number for each person, that much was sure. Some people had two, some had two hundred.Some had zero.It had nothing to do with physical fitness -  it wasn’t uncommon to hear of completely healthy people dropping dead from a stray skeleton arrow.The unexplained phenomena had proved for some to be more of a burden than a benefit. Children dying before their parents, the constant fear and doubt and worry that any slip could lead one to never open their eyes again.Still, Dream considered every day a blessing.
Relationships: Clay | Dream/GeorgeNotFound (Video Blogging RPF), Zak Ahmed/Darryl Noveschosch
Comments: 6
Kudos: 16





	1. The Younger Brother

**Author's Note:**

> AN: Hi, hello, how are you? This is my first multichap for this fandom! And the first multichap I’ve done that has so many fantasy/gameplay elements. I’ll be playing a bit fast and loose with some Minecraft rules and adding in a few of my own, as well as ignoring pretty much all SMP lore (sorry lol).
> 
> I’m excited to get this going and I hope you enjoy it!
> 
> Alternate Summary: When Dream wakes up to find his older brother Techno gone, he embarks on a quest to defeat the Ender Dragon with the help of some friends. But with an uncertain number of respawns, and a gang of teens to look after, it only gets more dangerous from here.

To date, no one understood how the respawn effect worked. 

Countless hours of research had been poured into the life-granting ability with little in the way of results. The first experiments only proved that it existed. If you died, (and you were lucky) you came back. Always with a solid surface beneath you, always within a hundred yards of where you died. Further experimentation after these tenets were found was scarce; no one wanted to risk their lives only to find out they were one of the unlucky ones.

There was a set number for each person, that much was sure. Some people had two, some had two hundred. 

Some had zero.

It had nothing to do with physical fitness - it wasn’t uncommon to hear of completely healthy people dropping dead from a stray skeleton arrow. 

The unexplained phenomena had proved for some to be more of a burden than a benefit. Children dying before their parents, the constant fear and doubt and worry that any slip could lead one to never open their eyes again.

Still, Dream considered every day a blessing.

* * *

The sun streaming through the open slats of wood pulled Dream from his slumber. Like milk spoiling, slowly at first, then all at once; he bolted upright.

Techno was gone. 

The still air hanging above his head told Dream as much. But it wasn’t cause for concern yet. Techno was known to stay out late, or in this case early, on hunts. 

And yet, something felt different as Dream threw off the scratchy sheets, shuddering as the cool breeze bit at his exposed ankles. 

The floor was slightly warmer than the air, but only barely. 

He made his way out of the small bedroom and into the living space. As he threw the last four pieces of coal into the furnace, he shuddered at the realization that he’d likely have to go mining before the week was out. 

He glanced outside as the room began to warm a bit from the burner, and did a double-take as he noticed the eerily familiar green creature inching toward the cobblestone path that led to the center of town. 

_A creeper._ Dream’s mind supplied. _But how? Techno was-_

He didn’t have time to question his brother’s apparent mistake as the creeper started moving closer to the neighboring house, and Dream heard the tell-tale sign of an explosion about to begin.

He sprung into action, instinctively grabbing his trusty axe and ripping out of the house. 

All the commotion caused the mob to spin around, its beady soulless eyes locking with Dream’s. The blonde didn’t give the creature a chance to react, rushing toward it, landing two quick hits in the center of the sorry excuse for a face and backing up quickly. But as he was retreating he heard the distinctive _sizz_ coming from the depths of hell itself. The creeper’s eyes pulsed rhythmically under the surface staring through Dream’s very being.

_Tick_

_Tick_

_Tick_

**Boom**

The creature exploded, sending a mass of dirt from under its feet flying. 

_You should have been quicker._ His brother’s voice rang out in his head. _Now look at the mess._

When the dust finally settled in the newly gaping hole in the ground, Dream chanced a look up, seeing the explosion had taken a sizable chunk out of the neighboring house, leaving several of the rooms exposed to the outside. 

He walked closer, the pit in his stomach growing as he surveyed the destruction. 

Cold air wafted through the now open space, leaving the house drafty. Dream noticed the bedroom, bitter and lifeless as the breeze swept through the still made sheets.

 _Wilbur’s guitar_ sat untouched in the center of the bed.

If Dream didn’t know any better he’d say it looked lonely. Calling out for its owner’s careful fingertips to pluck at the strings like they used to. With the same life they used to.

Dream didn’t dare touch it. Didn’t dare breathe too hard in any direction for fear that he would disturb the shrine to the town musician.

Wilbur’s death had been sudden. So sudden, so recent, that Dream was surprised to already see a thin layer of dust coating the furniture.

Wilbur had been a good man and an even better musician.

He had been kind and witty and _talented._ Too damn talented for his own good sometimes, often finding himself the focal point of many a town gathering. He never seemed to mind, never seemed to notice all the attention, his sights solely focused on his own hands and the music he seemed to craft like magic.

He cared about people, did his best to do right by them. 

Like the brother Dream always wished his brother could be. 

And Techno had adored Wilbur. 

He never said it outright, but Dream knew. 

The late nights Techno had spent hammering away at piles of wood, splinter by splinter crafting a fence, a wall, that could one day keep everyone safe, Wilbur sat next to him, strumming away on his guitar and humming softly.

They never spoke, or at least Dream never witnessed an actual conversation between the two, but the familiarity was there, the intimacy they seemed to share, never speaking but existing in the same world, the same air. 

Dream shook his head. 

It wasn’t fair. 

That someone so good, so painstakingly kind and polite and nice, could be taken from them without another word. 

Dream felt bile rising in his throat and turned away from the instrument, stumbling teary-eyed back to his own house, never shaking the feeling of failure that clung to his eyelashes along with his unshed tears.

The chunks of dead grass outside his house only worsened the feeling. 

Dream hardly noticed the warmth he returned to, sinking into the uncomfortable chair at their lone table. He could already feel a headache bloom in the wake of his adrenaline crash. 

It was only then that he noticed a scrap of paper fluttering gently in the drafty house.

Dream snatched it up, devouring the neat scrawl with one pass of his eyes. 

**Gone to the End.**  
**Don’t come after me.**  
**Keep everyone safe.**

**\- D**

Dream’s blood turned to ice.

* * *

After realizing that the consistent rapping on his door would only stop if he opened said door, George sighed, mumbling curses to himself as he made his way up and over to the pounding wood. 

He winced as the early sunlight stung his eyes, winced even more at the sight of the disheveled blonde boy in front of him. The younger man didn’t even wait to be let in, plunging ahead into the house, whipping around quickly to face his friend. 

Dream looked… unsteady. Worried, even. The wild look in his eye made unease pool in the pit of George’s stomach.

“He’s gone,” Dream said simply.

“Wh-”

“Techno. Techno’s gone, George.”

The older man sighed. “He’s probably-”

“No, George. Look.” Dream stopped him with an outstretched hand, thin slip of paper held out to George’s curious gaze.

George’s eyes widened as he read over the words. Once. Twice. And then once more for good measure.

“He- that’s- he-he... signed it,” George stammered out, the weight of the simple initial settling into his gut.

Dream nodded solemnly. 

“Well, not really signed it, but,” George motioned emptily toward the air, as if his gesture would somehow convey how important this moment was. 

The blonde boy sighed, finally glancing up to meet George’s eyes. 

Worry was set deep in the lines beside the green orbs, or at least, what George had been told was green. 

The older man’s stomach flipped at their prolonged eye contact and the silence that surrounded them, Dream searching his expression for… something. 

A reaction. A weakness. 

Dream’s eyes always seemed to disarm George, something he had tried and failed to overcome in the years they’d known each other. 

He shook his head, fighting off the shiver that attempted to wrack his body. 

Chuckling weakly, he attempted to joke, “leave it to your brother to still not trust you with his name.”

Dream rolled his eyes and snatched back the note. “Yeah, yeah, alright George, I know you don’t believe in the curse.”

“Why would someone saying your name take away a respawn?” George asked plainly. “You know that rumor only started to keep people from having sex,” he added.

Dream’s head shot up. “How the hell would it do that?” He asked incredulously. 

George shrugged, attempting nonchalance. “I dunno, but that’s what every old ‘curse’ is about.” There was a pause. “Maybe it has to do with moaning their-”

“Okay, okay, that’s enough!” Dream exclaimed, George smirking as he noticed a slight flush trailing up Dream’s neck. 

George giggled, walking forward to poke at Dream’s sides teasingly. “Aww, Dreamie, are you embarrassed?”

Dream batted his hands away with mild frustration. “I don’t know how you can joke right now.”

George shrugged. “I’m coping.”

“Yeah, well how about you cope by coming with me after him.”

George’s playful smile faltered. “What- Dream, he told you to stay and look after the village.”

Dream shook his head firmly. “Bad can take care of everyone. Plus he knows the fence blueprints so he can work on it while we’re gone.” 

When George still didn’t look convinced, Dream continued on, grabbing George’s hands in his own much bigger ones and squeezing. His impassioned plea and the skin to skin contact left George’s mind reeling. “I need you, George. I’m shit with a bow and arrow, and the dragon fucking flies.”

George took a step back, mostly so he could breathe, but also so he could put a stop to the endless trail of sparks shooting up his arm at Dream’s contact. “Hold up. Wait a minute. You want us to fight a dragon? THE dragon? You can’t be serious! I’ve barely survived a hunt with your brother, Dream, I can’t fucking kill a dragon.”

“I can’t go alone.”

“You don’t have to go AT ALL.”

Dream sighed.

George watched Dream deflate, his shoulders hunched in on themselves as a look of defeat and disappointment washed over him.

“Is this about Pandas?” He asked softly.

Dream’s eyes widened as he looked pleadingly up at his friend. “Don’t- George-”

The older man cut him off, placing a gentle hand on the younger’s shoulder. “We don’t know that killing the dragon will bring him back. Those old stories… even if it is true, there’s no guarantee.”

Dream pushed off George’s hand, and the older man tried not to wince, as Dream walked back the way he had come, only stopping once he reached the door. 

He turned back hesitantly, but the fire in his eyes burned gold. “I’m going. With or without you”

* * *

Bad held a finger up to stop the two boys in front of him, mind going a mile a minute as he tried to process what on earth they were thinking. 

“Slow down there, heroes!” Bad chuckled nervously. “Do you even know how to get to The End?”

Dream shrugged, brushing off Bad’s concerns with a wave of his hand. “There’s a portal, endermen, something about blazing.” 

Bad rolled his eyes. “You have to go to the Nether,” he sighed.

“What the _fuck_ is the Nether?” George groaned.

“Language.”

“Hell,” Skeppy threw out from where he was perched atop the cartography table behind Bad.

“Skeppy!” Bad scolded, turning to face his friend, eyebrows raised.

The boy just shrugged. “It’s basically Hell. Fire and lava and shit.” His eyes grew wider, expressions more animated. “There’s these fucking pig things that’ll shoot you in the head with no fucking warning.”

“Language!” Bad admonished. 

As he turned back to Dream and George, he noticed their wary looks toward Skeppy. Bad felt anxiety prick at the back of his neck at their reaction, though he knew it shouldn’t be a surprise at this point. 

Skeppy’s… unique appearance had been a matter of contention between more than just Bad and his friends. The bits of diamond ore embedded under the surface of Skeppy’s skin had bred a troublesome childhood, with the rest of the village choosing to view the boy as nothing more than a freak. 

They called him cursed. 

Unlovable. 

Deformed.

Bad, for his part, never could grasp why everyone seemed so distrusting toward the boy. Skeppy had been kind to Bad growing up. And Bad was kind in turn. 

They had leaned on each other; still did. Far more than they rightfully should at this age, but neither of them seemed to mind all that much.

Still, not everyone saw it that way.

“You mostly just need to go and get blaze rods,” Bad explained. “Then you can make ender eyes and only after all that is done can you even _think_ about trying to find the end portal. Even if you do all that-”

“-when we do all that.” Dream corrected.

Bad sighed. “Even then, you can’t know what you’re going to face. I’ve read the stories hundreds of times but you still have to fight a _dragon_ , Dream.”

Dream looked back at Bad, that quintessential mix of pain and stubbornness hung heavy in the space just behind his eyes. “Come with us then.”

“W-What?” Bad spluttered.

The blonde shrugged, corner of his mouth quirking up in that dangerously tempting way. “You said it yourself, you’ve read the stories, you know more about what we’re facing than we do.” He gestured between himself and George.

Bad stared wide-eyed at the two boys in front of him. “I can’t just leave-”

“Bring the freak too, I don’t care.” Dream scoffed, shooting a disgusted look in Skeppy’s direction.

Bad felt fire burn in the pit of his stomach. “Don’t call him that,” he gritted out.

“Whatever.” Dream rolled his eyes. “Are you coming or what?”

Bad heard rather than saw Skeppy get up, his warm presence coming to stop beside him. 

“If we all go, who’s going to protect the village?”

* * *

Karl was sweating bullets, out of breath and panting by the time he made it to the town center. He didn’t blink twice at the strange looks and stares he got as he practically tripped over himself, eyes searching around wildly for his friends.

He finally spotted the group seated around the old tree just off center of the town square.

“They’re gone!” He managed to get out in between gulps of air.

“Who’s gone?” Quackity asked, hardly looking up from polishing the sword in his hand. 

“Techno disappeared last night and now I can’t find Dream,” Karl panted.

Tommy rolled his eyes, annoyed, “He’s probably-”

“Or George.” Karl added.

“Oh.”

Tubbo spoke up from where he was fiddling with the string in his hands, half-assembled bow sitting lonely on the ground in front of him, his big brown eyes growing wide. “You think they went to fight-”

“Don’t say it,” Quackity groaned, eyes shutting tight as he collapsed back against the tree.

“Where the hell else would they go? There’s nothing for ages!”

“Maybe that other village past the mountain?” Tommy threw out hopefully.

“There is no village past the mountain, Tommy.” Quackity rolled his eyes.

“What the fuck are you on about, my mum said-”

“Your mum’s a liar.”

“Fuck off-”

“Why now though?” Tubbo asked aloud.

“Techno always wanted to be a hero.” Karl mused.

“He just wanted to be important, Dream wants to be the hero.” Quackity added, matter of factly.

“You guys are focusing on the wrong shit here!” Tubbo exclaimed. “The fence isn’t done.”

“Oh, fuck.” Tommy cursed. “Who’s gonna look after us?”


	2. The Beginning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang sets off on their adventure. After running into some trouble, they get a moment to reflect on what brought them so far from home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi hi! I hope you guys are enjoying this! I'm sorry it took so long to update, but college is KICKING my ass rn.

The first few steps out of the village, out into the open air, were electrifying. The addicting cocktail mixture of nerves, fear, and elation pooling in Skeppy’s gut left him lightheaded. 

He kept close to Bad’s side, mostly out of habit, but also to minimize the possibility of pissing off their present company more than his mere presence already did. Bad spoke to him in a soft voice, keeping himself calm most likely. Skeppy recognized how difficult it must be for him, for all of them. He knew Dream and George had ventured beyond the village before, but never for longer than a night, and never as far as they were planning to go. 

And Bad was a rule follower, a nervous wreck on a good day. They balanced each other out in that way.

Skeppy smiled, keeping his expression jovial and his tone light. He cracked jokes that made Bad roll his eyes, and they momentarily forgot the weight of their ridiculously heavy bags.

The weight of their journey, however, didn’t fully set in until the sun began to make its descent. The cool breeze snuck under Skeppy’s jacket, tracing up his sleeves with its icy breath, biting at the skin there. He shivered unconsciously and noticed the others doing the same.

They came to a stop as they crested a hill, Dream taking a moment to survey the land around them. Looking over the valley to their right, the gang could spot mobs beginning to slink their way out of the caves, the spreading darkness providing perfect cover for their attacks.

Skeppy felt another shiver wrack his body at the sight of them. He hadn’t ever seen mobs so close. Purposefully having avoided night hunts, choosing instead to hone his talents indoors, Skeppy had strayed clear of danger in every sense of the word.

Not to mention his father hadn’t allowed it. 

Dating back as far as he could remember Skeppy had never been allowed to put himself in harm's way. He was “too precious” according to his father. Not that anyone else in the village seemed to view him in that way.

Dream pointed out a cave only a small jog across the open field below. “We’ll set up camp in there. Doesn’t look too deep.”

Skeppy wanted to argue that they probably shouldn’t be camping out in one of the places they _knew_ mobs liked, but no one else seemed too concerned. The sun was much lower now, and Skeppy could see the traces of light leaking into the sky from the rising moon.

The group took a collective breath in, looking down at their path to safety, tracing it out once more for good measure. There were a few zombies traipsing about the tall grass and the tell tale sound of clattering bones echoed against the rock faces. 

_Inhale._

It seemed like the world held still for a brief moment, everything around Skeppy fading into the background as the tension in his body ratched up impossibly higher. Dream pulled his axe in closer, George knocked an arrow in preparation, and Bad’s sword caught the early moonlight.

Skeppy balled his fists and prayed they wouldn’t encounter any resistance.

_Exhale._

Skeppy’s feet were a blur beneath him, his body only distantly aware that he was moving. His eyes raced along their path ahead, following Dream’s lead as he ducked and strafed through the grass. There were flashes of motion on every side of them, and Skeppy heard the distinct sound of an arrow whizzing past his head. 

The next time, he wasn’t so lucky, and he felt a sharp pain in the back of his neck before everything turned black.

Respawning fucking sucked.

It always did.

The darkness spread out before him, the neverending feeling of hot white-heat consuming his very essence as the atoms of his soul were stitched back together. He would compare it to fire, but that metaphor never seemed right. It was like a burning, true, but in the way that cracked and snapped his bones back into place. In a way that scratched, with claw-like nails down his skin. In a way that felt like dying all over again.

Skeppy opened his eyes, blinking up to the night sky. For a brief moment, he thought it looked beautiful. 

Then he heard the yelling.

“Skeppy, duck!”

The command only faintly registered in his brain before his body moved downward, on instinct. He heard a _thunk_ as an arrow pierced the body of a zombie alarmingly close to him. 

“Fuck,” he yelled, looking back over to see George grimacing.

Skeppy bolted down the hill he had spawned on, racing back to the group who had stopped in the middle of the field to look for him.

Dream scowled as he approached. “Next time, don’t just stand there,” he bit out.

Skeppy only nodded, and the group rushed ahead into the cave.

Bad lit the surrounding brush on fire, providing a bit of light as George and Dream fought off a zombie and a creeper back in the darker parts of the cave. After a combination of well placed hits, the creatures gave a whine before disappearing in a cloud of smoke. 

Bad continued around the cave, lighting sticks and stray greenery on fire, illuminating the darkness.

Dream was right, the cave wasn’t that deep, only enough to give them shelter out of sight from mobs. Still, the groaning and wailing from just beyond the lip of the cave made Skeppy shudder, placing his head further between his knees as he fought off the nausea threatening to overtake him.

The rest of the group bustled about the small area, setting up a central fire and clearing away space for their sleeping bags.

Skeppy felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up. George was staring at him hard with the same judgment and fear he always had, but he held out a water bottle.

“For the nausea,” he explained.

Skeppy took it gratefully, offering a smile that wasn’t returned.

The rest of the group settled in, George and Dream sitting side by side opposite Bad and Skeppy at the other end of the cave. They sat in silence for a beat until Bad offered to take the first night's watch. Skeppy gracefully tagged along, not trusting himself to not fuck up in the other males’ presence. 

Bad and Skeppy came to sit at the opening of the cave. If they strained, they could hear the distinct whispers of Dream and George. The valley they had just traversed was still crawling with mobs, but none seemed to notice the two, tucked away into the side of the mountain. 

“Are you okay?” Bad asked after a beat.

Skeppy nodded, not trusting himself to speak.

“Skeppy-”

“Sorry!” He groaned, putting his head in his hands. “I’m sorry! I know none of you want me here and I can’t fight for shit!”

Bad simply chuckled lightly, the high, clear sound making the icky, bad feeling inside Skeppy melt just a bit. “Well, I don’t know about those other things, but we can work on your fighting.”

Skeppy’s head shot up, noticing Bad now standing, an outstretched hand offered. He stumbled a bit as Bad pulled him up. The guy was deceptively strong. 

Bad nodded once. “Okay, for starters, what weapons did you bring?” 

“I, uh, brought a shovel.” Skeppy felt the back of his neck flush in embarrassment.

“A shovel?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay,” Bad nodded warily. “What’s it made of?”

“Ummm.”

“Skeppy-”

“Gold.”

Bad couldn’t control his expression, eyes going wide, bewildered expression plain. He opened and closed his mouth wordlessly. “You have… a gold shovel… to fight a Dragon?”

“Well, I don’t know how to use the others so-”

Bad sighed, shaking his head. “Okay, whatever, let’s just start simple, okay?”

Skeppy nodded encouragingly. 

“So if a creeper is coming at you, what’s your first move?”

“Run away,” Skeppy answered.

“Close enough.” Bad smiled. “What about a skeleton?”

“Also… run away.”

There was a beat of silence.

“Skeppy?”

“Yes, Bad?”

“Do you even know what these mobs do?”

“Yeah…. For sure.” Skeppy said, decidedly unsure. 

Bad groaned. “I spend all this time telling you these stories about life outside the village, the monsters, the combat, the heroes and villains, and you don’t pay attention to any of it!”

“I know about the cool parts!” Skeppy defended.

Bad shook his head, “This is hopeless.”

“I get distracted.”

“What could you possibly-”

“You look cute when you talk about that stuff.” Skeppy shrugged.

Bad scoffed turning his face away, but even in the low light, Skeppy could make out the red tinge to his cheeks. 

“Flirting will get you nowhere,” he scolded.

“You’re blushing,”

“Shut up.”

“Baaaaaaaaad,” Skeppy whined, a teasing smile taking over his face.

“What?”

“You’re cute.”

“S-stop it.”

Skeppy relented, for now, taking a step back and letting his head clear from the proximity. “Like you could teach me how to fight anyway.”

That was decidedly the wrong thing to say because before he could process the movement, Bad had swept his right leg around the back of Skeppy’s knees, pulling forcefully forward so the younger man fell to the ground, with a _thud_. Skeppy went to get up, to fight back, when he felt the cool edge of a blade pressing against the column of his throat. 

“What was that you were saying?” Bad smirked.

Skeppy looked up at him, a mix of wonder and amazement plain. He knew Bad could fight, at least theoretically, but being on the other end of it was different. So so different.

“Okay, okay, I take it back.”

Bad smiled triumphantly, basking in the glow of besting his friend for a bit longer, before sheathing his sword and pulling Skeppy up.

Skeppy brushed the rubble off his pants mumbling to himself. “I let you get that one in.”

Bad overheard him anyway. “Sure you did, Diamond Boy.”

* * *

George watched silently as Dream crawled into his sleeping bag, curling in on himself a bit to brace against the cold.

It wasn’t often George got to see his friend this up close, their sleeping positions mirroring each other. Dream’s eyelashes were longer than George remembered them being, his jaw more pronounced when laying on his side. 

“You’re thinking too loud,” Dream said, eyes closed.

George scoffed. “ _You’re_ thinking too loud.”

“Yeah, but I hide it well.”

“No, you don’t,” George spoke softly. “Not from me.”

Dream blinked his eyes open, the sudden intensity of his stare making George’s heart race. “Yeah, well, I never could hide from you.”

The eye contact was too much for George, he turned to lay on his back, the unforgiving stone making his spine protest the movement, but he ignored it for now. 

_I never could hide from you._

It was true.

Even when they were little Dream was bad at hiding his emotions. He was explosive, angry, emotional. A stark contrast to his unfeeling older brother.

George was similar in a way. He hid his emotions well, not that he had much of a choice in that matter.

Don’t show weakness. Don’t show mercy. 

Don’t  
Don’t  
Don’t

Dream worried so much about everyone else all the time, providing for them, making sure they were safe. George knew. He understood. That was Dream’s purpose, to protect, to feel of use to others. 

George’s purpose was to deal with the aftermath. 

To patch him up.  
To be his support.  
To protect him in turn. 

“Do you think- do you think we- could save him?” George asked quietly. 

“Pandas?” Dream paused. “I think we should at least try.”

George hummed. “I wonder what it’s like. To die. For the last time.”

“He shouldn’t have had to find out.”

“You know it wasn’t your fault.”

Dream sighed, “I was the one that suggested it.”

“We all used to do it,” George insisted. “Jumping off the cliffs was like a right of passage. When I was that age _Bad_ of all people took me up there. 

Dream shook his head, not wanting to believe it.

George pressed on, mouth moving before he could think better of it. “We jumped for hours. Each time we got more and more of a kick out of it. It was reckless, yeah, but we were young and it was stupid, but that’s what kids do, Dream.” 

“We shouldn’t have gone.”

“You couldn’t have known.”

Dream exhaled shakily. George looked over to see the younger man wincing, like the words physically pained him to hear. 

“At least he died somewhere pretty,” Dream finally whispered.

George nodded toward the roof of the cave, a sad smile pulling at the corner of his mouth. “I hope I die somewhere pretty.” 

“You aren’t gonna die, George.”

The unspoken ‘ _I won’t let you_ ’ hung heavy in the air.

Silence settled over the two, the only sound George could make out was the steady dripping of water against the cave walls. And at some point, Dream’s breathing evened out as he fell into a restless sleep. Only then did George allow himself to turn back around, facing the younger man. 

He swore he had never seen Dream look so peaceful. The long lines beside his face smoothed over in bliss, the harsh indents on his forehead appeared only slightly wrinkled. 

George fought the urge to run his fingers over the creases beside Dream’s eyes, the cut of his jaw, the curve of his upper lip. 

But only barely.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know ur thoughts! You can find me on tumblr @ manhuntmedown


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